Novatac Storm Long Term Updates?

Theres a thread in the good deals forum for a storm right now. Ive been looking for a decently priced light for EDC. Ive been leaning towards something like the new EX11's. Well this deal popped up and I jumped on it right away.

Now Im reading some of the very limited reviews and its not looking good. So Id just like to see, since this light has been out for a while now, some longterm reviews. I dont need beam shots or run times, just if the light has lived up to the novatac name.

Possible issues seem to be:
Heavy parasitic drain
Faulty spring
Powering on randomly

Thanks for any help

I seem to remember some past threads discussing the apparent decline in quality of the Novatacs in recent years. Everyone here will tell you if you like that style and design, get an HDS systems light and I would too. They're fantastic and reliable tools with great customer service and support. I don't own any Novatacs, so I can not speak from any first hand experience on them. Only what I've read here, and it's usually not good. I know the Novatacs are cheaper than the HDS, but apparently that's the problem. You get what you pay for this case. The new HDS rotary is spoken of almost with "reverence" here. I'm waiting on one myself, but even less expensive are the "clicky" models of which I have a 170t that goes with me constantly. I'll never be without at least one HDS light the rest of my life.

Thats unfortunate. I would love an HDS if I could afford it, but its just not in the budget at the moment.

Thanks for the input mrlysle. I would love to head if anyone else has an opinion on novatac lights.

I bought a Novatac Storm about a year ago (maybe it's been longer than that--I'm not sure).
I'm not aware of any parasitic battery drain problem--at least with mine.

However, I did have a problem with the spring on the underneath side of the head which contacts the positive end of the battery. It seemed to be made of a "soft" metal and would compress into an irregular shape when the battery was installed. I could pull it back up with a pair of needle nose pliers, but after reinserting the battery it would squish back down again.

I contacted their Customer Service department and they issued a Return Authorization and sent me a new replacement flashlight. The spring on the replacement unit they sent seems to be a much higher quality and always returns to its uncompressed position when the battery is removed.

The other thing I noticed was that the bezel ring (on the very front end of the flashlight) was made of aluminum and was extremely difficult to remove. I replaced it with a stainless steel bezel ring from Lighthound.

These are made in China and I don't believe the quality is on par with the older Novatacs that were made in the USA. However, I think they are still a decent flashlight and Novatac stands behind them if you would have an issue or problem.

I got a Novatac Classic (the 2AA version of the Storm). The quality is simply not there. It's an okay light for the $40; a little below Fenix quality. The EX10 or EX11 for $50 would be my choice.

Have you posted in the WTB section of the marketplace looking for a user 120P, 120T, or 120E? You might get one for $50, and they are MUCH better lights. If you have already ordered one, it would be a really nice gift for a non-flashalholic.

I had a Novatac Storm, and didn't mind the light, except it had the same soft spring in the head. Got sick of it and pulled it apart. It would be quite easy to upgrade the emitter, and since it already has a SSC P4 emitter, you could easily swap it out for a High CRI P4

I gave mine away and bought a 120M instead and the quality was just that little bit better. The spring and the threads were better, and the quality of light was more consistant.

The 120E I bought late last year had the same problem with the soft spring at the head. I exchanged it immediately at the dealer I bought it from. The second one didn't have this problem and I upgraded it with a nice pure white K2 TFFC.

Flashlike said:

...
These are made in China and I don't believe the quality is on par with the older Novatacs that were made in the USA. However, I think they are still a decent flashlight and Novatac stands behind them if you would have an issue or problem.

Click to expand...

So how can you tell if it's made in China? I looked the packaging and manual over on my new Storm, and all I could see was a USA address.

The early Novatacs say "Made in the USA" on the tailcap. I have several of the early models and have had no trouble with them of any kind. I don't have any experience with the newer Novatacs.

Well, mine is definitely Chinese then. Well, so far it seems fine...the spring seems good, and it performs flawlessly so far. Time will tell.

Thanks for the confirmation.

I guess some of us took advantage of the good prices on the NovaTec and purchased before reading the recent reviews. I just tonight purchased a Classic, after reading the tread- maybe I didn't do as well I was thinking I did. Like someone said earlier, I'm glad I didn't pay full price...

Oddly enough I never paid much attention to the Novatac lights until they began showing up on close out sales all over. I bought one in gunmetal color...then added a black one and just now got the desert sand.

I really would never have paid full cost for the newer versions however at 40 dollars they are worth it to me. I only have the Storms however once cracked with the 250 click mod they all seem to work very well.....Plus as a flashaholic I simply could not rest until I had one of each color.

I did have to clean the spring inside the body tube and also did a hard reset with the first few mod attempts to get it working smoothly. I removed the strobe and replaced it with max burst however mostly use them for around the house lights on medium and lowest setting.

Long term observations I can only say mine continue to work with frequent usage. I have not carried these lights in an outside environment so again durability is unknown to me. I would imagine they would hold up as well as others in the 40-50 dollar price range. Good looking light and fits my hand well and I like the pocket clip as it is pretty tight and rests screwed between the bezel ring and body.

It will surely not win any awards for output on max however agin the beam is smooth and all of mine are a little cool in output (I actually like that) If you can find any left for the 40 dollar sale pirce I would try one.

Edit: Also I have not had any problems with the tailcap switch as I have read from others. I will say the first one I had I must have clicked that dang switch at least 1500 times within an hour or so trying to figure out that 250 click mod. The switch still feels strong and never malfunctioned. A few times I noticed when first turning the light on it would go to max (as I wanted) then step down a little lower and blink once then back to max. I unscrewed the body breaking the battery connection then screwed it back together. This seemed to solve the problem and must have somehow reset the light without erasing my settings.

So I guess I could say the electronics have acted "weird" but nothing I could not cure and nothing repeated or long term. Honestly I believe the latest version of Novatac was no where near worth the 100 dollar cost I saw at some places. Maybe this is why they are all being liquidated among our dealers as they simply were not being bought for full cost.

I received a $40 storm a couple of weeks ago. No problem with the spring, it seems firm and in its original condition. No operational problems. It turns on when I want and changes output as advertised. I would rate it as a decent $40 light. If I had paid $100, I would feel a little used, but at $40, its all right. Its going to go in my glove compartment once the newness wears off and I return to EDCing my Zebra.
I have tried several times to get the 250 clicks to get me into programing mode with no luck. I don't know if the new ones don't have this or I can't count to 250. (Its really hard)

Yep, Bro's right...I saw the price, and since all I had ever seen about Novatac/HDS/Ra was good (didn't really study up on them, because there were so cost prohibitive at full price), so I pulled the trigger. I've done it before with other lights too...see what seems like a great price on a light, buy it, and then start looking at what's been said about them.

I don't feel too bad about getting the Storm though, if for nothing else other than curiosity, to find out what the fuss is about. It's a pretty nice light, and it's functioning perfectly (so far), the spring is good, etc. but I am glad I didn't pay $100 for it.

I don't see myself EDCing the Storm much, it's a bit too big for me, and the dismal runtime on high, is a downer. I need to try the 250 clicks thing and set it up a little differently, like having it start on Low, then Medium, then High.

Time will tell... :shrug: